Longterm blessings and desert worgs.

[Albions_Angel]

Hi all,

I feel like I had another question but I cant remember it so another thread may appear later today.

Im filling out desert encounter tables and having a lot of fun and 2 questions came to mind.

Is there a spell, or spells, that function like a longer version of bless? I am talking time in hours or days. It doesnt have to be as powerful. In each encounter table, there will be a chance to meet a hermit healer type person, who will, if donated to, have a chance of passing on a blessing. This chance increases given the environment (my CR 1-5 table only has a 20% chance to bless, but the CR 8-15 table has a 50% chance). Id like a blessing that lasted the whole day if possible. Of course I could homebrew something but I dont like homebrew if I can avoid it.

I am also looking for a desert version of a worg. Specifically, some form of 4 legged, doglike creature that goblins can ride. NOT ashworms. Ashworms belong to another faction. Hyena is close, but its a lot weaker and a much less intelligent than a worg. Again, I could reskin a worg into a desert worg, and end up with something like the worgs from LOTR, but a real monster is better.

Any ideas?

EDIT: I remembered! Would adding a homerule that mount movement counts towards scout movement totally destroy the scout class? I usually run games for new players or players where wizards are buffers and sorcerers are blasters and fighters are a valuable asset to the team until the mid teens.

[Zaq]

What would make a worg "deserty" in your view?

Sandstorm has the dire jackal, which is an animal rather than a magical beast (and therefore it's significantly less intelligent than a worg), but it's from Sandstorm and therefore is assumed to be found in hot deserts. It's also Large, if that matters.

I don't know of any printed spells that are as tiny as Bless but that give their bonus for significantly longer. It's about the smallest possible effect you can have, so I'm not sure how exactly you'd make it "weaker." I mean, adherence to RAW is great and all if it helps the game, but honestly, "having a positive interaction with a desert hermit gives you a +1 bonus to attack rolls for the rest of the day/week" is about the most harmless kind of "homebrew" (if you can even call it that) I can think of.

[Albions_Angel]

So in the games I usually run, a +1 to attack and damage is often a game changer at low levels. Every ounce of atk is needed. Thats what I meant by saying I dont mind if its weaker. Bless on a party is really nice. That said, I wouldnt mind if it was +2 to survival, or it refills their water skins, or it grants some other boon. I dont mind what it is, so long as it lasts for at least the whole day. But more than a bless is probably pushing it a bit. I want the party at low levels to feel like its a real gift, and not really impact at mid levels or high levels, but be memorable enough that they go "Well, good job we were kind to that holy man, or that would have missed!" Its a CR0, 0.4% chance encounter, with a further condition and percent chance on it. I dont want them to rely on it.

As for what constitutes a desert thing, well, I guess I am kinda looking for a smarter jackle or hyena or something like that. Something stereotypically Savannah or Sahara. Something befitting a group of goblins living in a desert bandit camp, or on the edge of vast scrubland.

[Zaq]

You seem to know exactly what you want. Again, I respect trying to stick to the rules if it makes the game better, but if you don't have what you want in the rules and you're worried that close-enough RAW options might end up on a different power scale than you're looking for, why not just go with what you're looking for?

Also, no player is going to be "relying on" a random encounter unless you've given them the random encounter charts and they're just grinding to find as many encounters as it takes before they get the specific one they want. This isn't a video game and no one has time for that, and again, if they don't even know that it's there (have you told them that this is something they should be looking for or aiming for?), they can't alter their behavior to try to farm for it. (And if they do specifically go looking for this kind of thing, that shouldn't be a random encounter anymore. That should be a quest, and quests are interesting and should be rewarded when possible.)

And again, I don't care how low power your game is, it's literally the smallest bonus that the game is capable of registering. A +1 to a d20 roll will matter exactly 5% of the time, assuming that the check is in the realm of possibility at all: the other 95% of the time, you'll succeed without the bonus or you'll fail even with the bonus. It's not going to be a big deal. Sure, the basic idea behind numerical optimization of d20 rolls is to get as many bonuses from as many places as possible until the aggregate matters, but if you're that terrified of a single +1 that isn't even firmly within the control of the players, I genuinely don't know what to tell you. You can't make a +1 be that big of a deal even if you choke off most avenues of finding them, and if that's your goal, I'm not sure that the system is going to support you in the way you want to be supported, you know?

[Segev]

You’re the DM. Make the hermit do what you want. They could be a unique race or class that otherwise sucks, mechanically, or something. Or a feature of a magic location.

[Thurbane]

There's Sand Hunters (Sandstorm), but they're generally NG.

http://archive.wizards.com/dnd/images/sand_gallery/87633.jpg

The Death Dog (Fiend Folio) is probably a decent match: NE, CR 2, 2 HD, medium Magical Beast, canine in appearance, found in desert environments...

http://archive.wizards.com/dnd/images/ff_gallery/50157.jpg

[noob]

You can also persist bless and if you are ready to delve in dmm persist then you can do that with a level 1 cleric.

[Kol Korran]

1. Endure Elements lasts 24 hours, and it can be a real blessing in desert environments (Especially if you are using the environmental rules). Another possibility is Long Strider- faster pace for both overland travel and tactical movement, which could be handy in a desert.

2. No reason why worgs can't fit in deserts. The goblins acclimated, so can they. I see them as nocturnal hunters, possibly shorter fur, and possibly of a lighter shade, but otherwise the exact same worgs. If they reside with the goblins, even more so. (The goblins may erect sheds for shade, or underborrows to reduce heat exposure).
Alternatively, what about... hell hounds? Not much higher CR, and rsistant to heat. Possibly with some fiendish connection? (Helloooo Barghest chief/ advisor!)

3. I have no idea about the scout question. Sorry.

[Luccan]

If you're looking for non-homebrew solutions, might I recommend the Awaken spell for your mount problem? Adds some HD, a non-animal Intelligence (variable from 3 to 18, but you can always choose to match the Worg's 6 Int as the baseline, DM fiat and all that. Statistically 10 or 11 should be your most common outcome, though.), and a small Charisma boost. They become magical creatures as well. If you're ok with your Goblins having a druid of at least 10th level on their side (a leader or shaman, perhaps?) they become a dangerous foe, as well as a good target once your party levels up if they want to cripple the Goblin faction's mounted forces. Or it could always be some custom item the desert Goblins found long ago that they use on each newborn pup. Up to you.

[Bronk]

For your hermit... maybe the hermit could secretly be Erbin in disguise?
http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20020406a
In that case, he could be giving out legit boons.

For the scout using a mount... I guess the change to prevent using mounts was in the errata, but I can't imagine it would matter that much. Mounts are usually more trouble than they're worth anyway, so if someone wanted to try it, I say more power to them.

[Albions_Angel]

Thanks for the replies :) Thats given me some ideas.

On the subject of the scout, sure, mounts are sub-optimal, but a scout is a nice PC class to through against my players for slightly stronger mooks. Higher damage, but not much more HP, and takes a little more work to get the Skirmish damage to go off, BUT in doing so they keep moving which keeps the players thinking. A rogue requires other mooks, or to be higher level and have skill tricks to reliably get SA off on a party that outnumbers them. So 5 bandit warriors led by 2 bandit level 1 scouts is really nice, because even after the warriors are dealt with, the scouts are still a threat without having to deal with invis or stuff a lower level party might struggle with. Add to the fact that its a nice open desert campaign, and Mongol-like horse bandits with bows makes sense thematically, with the horses able to out manoeuvre the party and give the scouts shots at unprotected flanks. And then there is the possibility of scouts wielding short swords (maybe even give them scimitars and the feat to wield them) and riding camels gives a nice desert theme and a real sense of "Oh No!".

The goblins, I like awaken. I like death dogs. I am also warming to the idea of re-fluffing a desert worg that is more like the Hyena in appearance and has heat endurance.

Then there is the holy man. The idea is that there are lots of them. There isnt one. And hes not blessing you. His gods look favourably on those who are kind to him (or her, or it I suppose). Maybe I will make a table of level 1 divine buff spells and grant one of those to the party for a whole day? Ill take a look at those boons too!

Thanks all!

[liquidformat]

Thanks for the replies :) Thats given me some ideas.
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DMM persist seems like a decent place to start, as well like you said taking a look at different spells that might be useful.

You could also look at adding the fiendish creature template to Hyena and dire jackals, adding heat endurance as a bonus feat and those changes could make a stupider version of the worg. alternately just take the hyena or dire jackal and change their int to 6 and give them the ability to speak Common and Goblin, and bam you have desert worgs!

Mounted scouts should be fine, it really isn't much of an improvement, you might check out the saber from forgotten realms campaign setting it is a mounted combat version of the scimitar. Also short spears and javelin might be good weapons for the mounted scouts since they can use them for ranged and melee combat.